How To

Google introduced a new app drawer style in the latest version of the Google Now Launcher — coinciding with the launch of Marshmallow — that now scrolls vertically, and has a set of so-called "app suggestions" at the top of the app drawer. It's supposed to smartly place apps at the top of the drawer based on how, when and where you use them ... but most of the time, it can just be annoying.

The LG V10 has multiple microphones (three, actually) to help focus on the sound you you want to capture when you're recording video. The combo of one pointing towards the front, one pointing towards the rear, and another used to try and filter out background noises is common, and it generally works well in most cases. But LG takes it all one step further with directional audio control.

Groups are now possible with Chromcast Audio, but setup can be a little tricky.
Google's audio-only addition to the Chromecast lineup this year seemed a little lackluster at first, but a recent update adding higher quality audio and the ability to group multiple Chromecast Audio together has elevated the accessory to a must for folks with multiple speaker setups in the home.
As is often the...

Google has enabled the family plan option for Google Play Music to just about everyone — so long as you're not on a Google Apps for Work account — let's take a look at how to set it up and get started.
It's simple, and you do it all from your Android phone or tablet. You will have to be a Google Play Music All Access subscriber (natch) with a regular Gmail account and need a few loved ones to...

There's a truly incredible number of things you can do with Amazon's connected speaker, and ideally a lot of these things will casually become a part of your daily routine over time. Amazon's Alexa service is designed to be something you can rely on for just about every aspect of the connected home, and to get the most out of this experience you want to start by setting it up correctly out of...

Fingerprint scanners on phones have come a long way since the Motorola Atrix introduced us to them. Thankfully, a really long way. While everyone thinks of them as a cool way to unlock your phone, that's not exactly how they work on the Nexus 6P and Nexus 5X with Android 6.0 Marshmallow.
Nexus Imprint (that's what Google calls its implementation of Marshmallow's fingerprint scanning and...

A lot of people buying the new BlackBerry Priv are moving from other BlackBerry devices that aren't running Android. With the app situation the way it is for the BB10 platform, that means a lot of those folks will have quite a number of apps in the Amazon ecosystem. It's easy to get all of those back on your new Priv.

Fingerprint security is all the rage on mobile devices lately. The LG V10 has it baked deep into the OS, so we wanted to take a look at how you get things set up and running. That's what we do best here at Android Central. Teach a man to fish, and all that.
Fingerprint security is not exactly new, but when companies like Apple and Samsung get on board with an idea it gets traction and people...

Having a second screen at the top of your new LG V10 isn't very helpful if you don't know how to set it up to your liking. It's there, waiting for you to add handy shortcuts to apps and contacts, or grab your notifications, or even just display the time or a friendly saying if that's how you want to use it. All you need to do is tweak the settings a little bit.
Let's dive in and see how it's...

Motorola Gallery is a simple, yet powerful photo viewer and editor, and it's already installed on your Moto G 2015.
Motorola has included their full-screen immersive gallery application in the Moto G 2015 software. While the Highlight Reel feature is not included (it's left for the more high-end devices) the app itself is still feature rich and offers most anything you would want from a photo...

Motorola has enabled some features from the Moto app for the new Moto G 2015. We first saw these "smart" — and fully disableable — features with the original Moto X, and they have been refined to work better with newer versions of Android. To Motorola's credit, the current version provides three simple, yet powerful functions that work well — even on the "lesser" hardware of the Moto G 2015.

Here's a quick one for peeps who don't want or need more status bar clutter on their new Moto G. By default, the name of the network you're currently attached to will be perched in the upper left, taking room many feel is best left for notifications. If you want to get rid of it, it's super easy on the single-SIM model.
Open the settings on your Moto G, and at the top section — Wireless &...

An ill-fitted shell could compromise your Moto G's water resistance.
If you're one of the many people picking up a Moto G 2015, chances are you'll want to switch up your phone's aesthetics with a replacement shell at some point. There are ten colors available, and Moto Maker lets you pick a color when you buy your phone. But if you're swapping shells from time to time, you'll want to make sure...

If you love Chromebooks like we do you'll want to see these tips and tricks to make the most of them.
Millions of people are using Chromebooks, but despite their simple and "for everyone" nature not every powerful feature is easy to access. Every Chromebook (or Chromebox) is a powerful tool that's just waiting to be used to its full potential, and once you know a few tricks you'll feel like...

Google Photos has turned into a wonderful repository for every photo you take, and also works as a nice stand-in gallery replacement app on many phones. A gallery app isn't just about holding photos though, it's also about editing pictures before sharing them out anywhere you want.
Astute Google Photos users will recognize its editing powers aren't as strong as those found in Google+...

Ads in BlinkFeed are rolling out to HTC phones in some countries — but it's easy to opt out if you want
HTC recently started showing promotions through its BlinkFeed home screen reader app. It's a somewhat controversial move that sees BlinkFeed — which had previously been free of advertisements — starting to show "interest-based" ads alongside news and social content in the U.S., UK, Germany,...

It's either the best or worst feature ever invented, depending on who you ask.
Everyone uses their devices just a little bit differently, and the web browser is more often than not a perfect example of that statement. Chrome for Android offers many great features, including the ability to sync all of your data across multiple devices so you are always with whatever tabs you left open elsewhere...

Google Maps is an amazingly powerful tool that can help you get anywhere, and see anything.
Whether you want to drive to a new place in the shortest amount of time, navigate a public transit system that you're still learning or get recommendations for things around you, Google Maps is an all-encompassing app that can do it. It offers real time traffic data, transit directions, a massive...

Control over your notifications is a breeze with Periscope.
As phones and technology progress, so does the way we interact with them. One thing never changes though, and its the fact that we all like to have control over when our phones decide to tell us about things. Some of us like a notification for every interaction across social networks, and then there are those who only want to hear...

Google's simple VR platform can be used anywhere and everywhere, but there are a few things you should do for an optimal experience.
One of the great things about Google Cardboard is how portable it is. While not every version of Cardboard is fully collapsible, even when fully set up these accessories don't take up a lot of space, and for the most part you can just pop your smartphone in and...